EU: Series Hockenheim preview

Meeting of talent at Hockenheim.
Munich. Formula BMW Europe returns to action this coming
weekend (18-20.07) at Hockenheim. The seventh and eighth races of the
season in the junior series will take place on the support programme for the
Formula...

Meeting of talent at Hockenheim.

Munich. Formula BMW Europe returns to action this coming
weekend (18-20.07) at Hockenheim. The seventh and eighth races of the
season in the junior series will take place on the support programme for the
Formula One German Grand Prix. A field of 29 drivers from 16 countries will do
battle to record the best possible race results. Mexican driver Esteban Gutierrez
(Josef Kaufmann Racing), who leads the Formula BMW Europe standings on
164 points after four wins from six races, will be looking to extend his advantage
over his nearest rivals Adrien Tambay (FR/Eifelland Racing, 132 points) and
Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing, 110 points).

Hockenheim will reveal who has enjoyed the best preparation for the race.
Gutierrez has been on holiday in Greece with his extended family between the
races at Silverstone and Hockenheim. Tambay, meanwhile, was in France to
receive the results of his school-leaving exams - and had good news to
celebrate. And Wittmann spent the week following the race at Silverstone on a
one-week welding course as part of his car body manufacturing apprenticeship.

The three German competitors in Formula BMW Europe can look forward to a
relatively short trip over to the next race. Hockenheim is just 140 km away from
Bastian Graber's (DE/AM-Holzer Rennsport) home in Niddatal, in the state of
Hessen, Wittmann has 200 km to travel from Markt Erlbach near Nuremberg,
and David Mengesdorf (DE/Mucke Motorsport) faces a 320 km journey from
Wolnzach in Bavaria.

Hockenheim will witness a coming together of talents old and new over the race
weekend. The young racers in Formula BMW Europe, who can get behind the
wheel of a FB02 from the age of 15, will be able to sample the excitement as the
most spectacular single-make competition in motor racing history - the BMW
M1 Procar series - returns to the track. 30 years ago, this series was a breeding
ground for young talent, just as Formula BMW Europe is today. The five fastest
drivers from Friday practice for the Formula One GP would earn themselves a
drive in the M1 race, while the 15 remaining 500 hp machines were piloted by
up-and-coming young hopefuls.